Tag: SpaceX
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SpaceX traces Falcon 9 blast to failed helium tank; return to flight set for Jan. 8
SpaceX’s return to flight is due to take place Jan. 8 at its launch facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX says an investigation has concluded that the Sept. 1 explosion of its Falcon 9 rocket occurred due to the failure of a helium pressure vessel, and it’s taking steps to avoid the…
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SpaceX’s first crew launch moved back to 2018
Artist’s concept of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft. Credit: SpaceX Astronauts will not fly to the International Space Station on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spaceship until at least May 2018, NASA said this week, missing a previous target launch date at the end of next year. The delay was expected after Boeing, which is also developing a…
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NASA confirms delay in commercial crew flights to 2018, pushing the envelope
An artist’s conception shows SpaceX’s crew-capable Dragon approaching a port on the International Space Station with a cargo Dragon in the foreground. (NASA Photo) NASA has confirmed that the commercial space taxis being developed by SpaceX and the Boeing Co. will start carrying astronauts to the International Space Station no earlier than 2018, and there’s…
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Citing SpaceX delays, Inmarsat moves satellite launch from Falcon Heavy to Ariane 5
File photo of an Ariane 5 launch in August 2015. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – P. Piron The launch next year of a commercial communications craft jointly managed by London-based Inmarsat and the Greek satellite operator Hellas-Sat has been switched from SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy to Arianespace’s Ariane 5 rocket, officials said…
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SpaceX targets early January for Falcon 9 rocket’s return to flight after explosion
The next launch of a Falcon 9 rocket is expected to occur in early January. (SpaceX Photo) SpaceX says it expects to finish its investigation of September’s fiery loss of a Falcon 9 rocket and its payload in time for a return to flight in early January. That launch is expected to send 10 Iridium…
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Busy December to mark end of year global launch salvo
Up to 15 orbital launches are set to take place during a very busy December, not counting the opening mission of the month that resulted in the loss of the Progress MS-04 cargo ship that was set to dock with the ISS over the weekend. This month is likely to include the highly anticipated return…
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SpaceX sets Dec. 16 for first flight since launch pad explosion
File photo of a Falcon 9 rocket rolling to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 4-East at Vandenberg. Credit: SpaceX The first 10 satellites in Iridium’s next-generation mobile voice and data network could head into orbit from California as soon as Dec. 16 on SpaceX’s first Falcon 9 flight since a booster exploded on…
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SpaceX prime Falcon 9 rockets for December return
In preparation for a December return to launch operations, SpaceX has delivered one Falcon 9 rocket to its Vandenberg launch site, while another undergoes testing at the company’s McGregor test center in Texas. Pending the conclusion of the Amos-6 failure investigation, SpaceX will be primed to return to action in December. Return To Flight: SpaceX’s…
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SpaceX files FCC application for internet access network with 4,425 satellites
SpaceX celebrated the announcement of a Seattle-area satellite operation by lighting up its logo at Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center. (GeekWire photo) SpaceX has laid out further details about a 4,425-satellite communications network that’s expected to provide global broadband internet access, with its Seattle-area office playing a key role in its development. The plan is…
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Here’s what Donald Trump, NASA and SpaceX need to do to get us to Mars
The crew of the fictional Daedalus spaceship touches down on the Red Planet in “Mars,” a miniseries making its debut on the National Geographic Channel. (Credit: National Geographic Channels) The “Mars” miniseries premiering on the National Geographic Channel is only the latest in a decades-long string of media projects laying out a vision for settling…